Dedicated

Most Unitarian Universalist congregations (including ours) conduct a child dedication ceremony to welcome children into the church community. It’s a lovely ceremony, the gist of which is to say, “Hello, you’re here, you’re one of us, we love you, and we’re going to look out for you.” At our church, the heart of the ceremony is a gift from the parents to the child. Each family picks out a special gift that in some way represents their hopes, wishes, or blessing for their child.

This Sunday, our church had a child dedication service for Juniper and Violet. Our gift to Juniper was a globe, described below. In addition to the individual child dedications, we also recognized the extended family relationship that has formed between our two families. Aaron and I committed to the joy and responsibility of always being a part of Violet’s life—as mentors, role models, and friends—and Cheryl and Jason made the same commitment to Juniper. Both of these girls are unimaginably lucky to have an extra set of practically parents, and we can’t begin to describe how lucky we are to have Violet (and her parents) as part of our family.

From Juniper’s child dedication service:
Our gift to you is the gift of wonder, represented by this globe. Right now, it’s a fun object that we can use to explore colors and shapes and textures. As you grow up, we will use it to teach you about continents and oceans, places you’ve been, and places you’ve never heard of before. We hope to fill you with curiosity about the world and everything in it. You already know that every single rock or piece of gravel is a little treasure to be explored. Take that sense of wonder and discovery with you as you grow up, look for the unique special thing in every rock, every person, every place—and most of all, in yourself. You won’t be disappointed; when you are looking for wonder, the world will always provide it.